Levi Hall, soon after the completion of the building in 1948. Today, an open-air portal through the building connects the medical campus to the Main Quadrangle. Then photo by L. Glenn Johnson courtesy Special Collections Research Center. Now photo by Robert Kozloff.
The University’s first modern building, Edward H. Levi Hall, was built in 1948, flanked by Ellis Avenue on the west and the Main Quadrangle on the east. Originally named the Administration Building, the building was renamed Edward H. Levi Hall in 2013 to honor and remember Edward Levi, the former dean, provost, and president who later served as U.S. Attorney General.
Also that year, as one of three projects designed to extend the Main Quadrangle and create better pedestrian access across campus, the University transformed Levi Hall’s central doorway into an open-air portal. This new walkway allows for a closer connection both visually and physically between the Main Quadrangle and the medical campus and science quadrangles.
While smaller in scale than other building projects on campus, the Levi Hall portal and other pedestrian improvements contribute significantly to access and to the look and feel of UChicago’s campus.
